NORTHAMPTON – A Hampshire Superior Court judge wants to see evidence that a grand jury was told Phoebe Prince’s age before ruling on a motion to dismiss a statutory rape charge against a former South Hadley High School student.

Austin Renaud, now 19, is accused of having sex with Prince when she was under the age of 16, sometime between July of 2009 and Jan. 14, 2010. Prince, a freshman at the high school, hanged herself on Jan. 14, 2010, at the age of 15. Investigators say her death followed several months of relentless bullying by some classmates. Prince’s suicide helped spark an international movement to combat bullying in school and catapulted South Hadley into the media spotlight.

Renaud is one of six former South Hadley High School students facing felony charges in connection with Prince, although he is the only one of them not charged with harassing her. In his motion to dismiss the statutory rape charge against his client, defense lawyer Terrence M. Dunphy contends that prosecutors failed to provide the grand jury with credible evidence that Renaud had sex with Prince and omitted statements by Renaud to the contrary.

In preparation for Tuesday’s court session, Judge Mary Lou Rup reviewed a videotape of a police interview with Renaud in which he reportedly expressed regret over Prince’s death and insisted he never had sex with her. Renaud then invoked his right to an attorney and left the room.

“The prosecution has a duty to play that tape (to the grand jury),” Dunphy told Rup.

Moreover, Dunphy argued that the bill of particulars submitted by the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office offers no specific dates or places involving the alleged acts, or even whether they occurred in Hampshire County. Dunphy also cited grand jury testimony by a witness who said Prince denied having sex with Renaud.

Northwestern Assistant District Attorney Thomas H. Townsend told Rup that the law does not require the prosecution to show the tape to the grand jury.

“Self-serving denial is not necessary for grand jury consumption,” he said.

Townsend, who inherited the case from the previous administration in the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office, did not present the evidence to the grand jury that indicted Renaud. However, he told Rup that the minutes indicate the jurors were told Prince was 14 before November 2009. Rup said that might not be enough to satisfy the requirements for indictment. She gave Townsend a week to file a more detailed response to Dunphy’s motion and gave Dunphy a week beyond that to reply.

Afterward, Dunphy said the onus is on the prosecution to support its charges in a case where the alleged victim is not available to testify.

“Somebody’s got to fill in the blanks,” he said.

Dunphy also dismissed grand jury testimony that Renaud bragged about sleeping with Prince.

“Sometimes guys claim victory in games never played,” he said.

Meanwhile, two of Renaud’s co-defendants are asking the court for more time as they investigate Prince’s emotional state. Lawyers for Sean Mulveyhill and Kayla Narey filed motions stating that they are still reviewing information that includes Prince’s medical records. Narey said the search extends to Ireland, where Prince lived before coming to South Hadley. Rup granted both requests.

In addition to Renaud, Mulveyhill and Narey, who have been charged as adults, Sharon Velazquez, Flannery Mullins and Ashley Longe face felony charges in juvenile court. Because Velazquez, Mullins and Longe were charged as youthful offenders as well as juveniles, their cases are also open to the public.